Is Dean Ambrose Really Leaving WWE?

One of many constant debates had by wrestling fans is whether or not Dean Ambrose is actually going to leave WWE. In a rather unorthodox turn of events, it was leaked and later confirmed that Dean Ambrose’s contract was set to expire shortly after WrestleMania 35, at which point, he will not be re-signing. Much to the despair of the hordes of Ambrose fans, all signs seem to be pointing towards ‘The Lunatic Fringe’ moving on with his career elsewhere, after being offered a lucrative $6 million contract by AEW and various other independent promotions expressing interest in booking him.

Nevertheless, things don’t quite add up. WWE have never been so open about one of their biggest performers and merch pushers deciding to leave the company. WWE have quickly turned Ambrose’s departure into a storyline of sorts, having him tie up some loose ends with Seth Rollins and The Shield and seemingly putting over Bobby Lashley in a very strange segment on his way out. His leaving date has constantly been referred to on commentary and Dean has been given several ‘farewell’ moments in dark segments once Raw went off the air.

My money is on Dean Ambrose sticking around.

WWE aren’t afraid to pull the wool over their audience’z eyes for the sake of a cheeky surprise. Just take a look back at the whole CM Punk saga in 2011. All suggested that Punk had indeed left WWE with the WWE Championship, yet a mere two weeks later, there he was on Monday Night Raw once again. I wouldn’t compare Dean Ambrose’s current status to that of Punk, but it would certainly make for an exciting shocker for the audience to see the man that has been presented as someone so keen on leaving to suddenly show up to wreak havoc. The path seems to be left open for Dean to pick up this ‘feud’ with Bobby Lashley. After the former Intercontinental Champion made some rather illicit remarks about Dean’s partner Renee Young, its almost taunting Ambrose into resigning his contract just to enact some revenge.

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Personally, I think that the giveaway here is just how open WWE are being about this entire fiasco. With the likes of Tye Dillinger requesting and awaiting his release, yet being kept under wraps, it’s strange that they’ve chosen to openly admit that Ambrose is going to be leaving so far in advance. Usually, WWE would bend over backwards to ensure their top stars stay loyal to them, and offer some fairly incredible payouts for those that hold off from signing long enough. Perhaps that’s Ambrose’s plan here? Nobody could say for sure. Either way, I can’t see this being the end of his mainstream career — it would be such an anticlimactic conclusion for a guy who was pencilled as the face of this generation.

Ambrose has been scheduled to appear on a WWE Network special this coming weekend, in a broadcast that’s dubbed as The Shield’s final match as a trio. Presumably this is a rehash of the six man tag that went down at Fastlane, but methinks this is the catalyst that will lead to Ambrose’s reinstatement as a full-time member of the WWE roster.

Regardless of what goes down over the next few weeks, I wish nothing but the best for Dean Ambrose. He has had a successful run as one of WWE’s top guys, being consistently over with the crowd in spite of whatever terrible gimmicky storyline they’ve got him involved in. Ambrose could have, and should have, been taken further than he was, allowing him to truly flesh out the character that he was so desperate to bring to WWE. Should this be the last time I write about him in the context of WWE, then I hope that he achieves everything he can on the independent circuit. At this point, it would be silly for him not to test the waters of AEW and see where that brand could take his name.

What are your thoughts on this situation? Will we continue to see Dean Ambrose in WWE? Or perhaps see the revival of Jon Moxley elsewhere? Let us know in the comments below.